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I carry on eof those little net hammocks weighs next to nothing, I can keep in in an exterior pocket since its the size of a baseball. I can use it as a quick comfortable chair during my trip. At night, I can sling it under my hammock keeps the gear off the ground and covered by my existing tarp.

I'll try hanging my pack and boots for now and see how it goes, then look into a gear hammock maybe - although I don't know if I want the added complexity. I'm very much a minimalist so - Simpler is better!!

I carry an extra tree-strap and biner and hang my pack from that. I use a 55gal drum liner as a pack poncho when the weather is questionable. The rest of my stuff sets on a 3x5 ground cloth(cheap camo tarp).

I'll try hanging my pack and boots for now and see how it goes, then look into a gear hammock maybe - although I don't know if I want the added complexity. I'm very much a minimalist so - Simpler is better!!

Thanks for the input everyone!!

You're welcome. Actually I also came upon that since it made it easier to get into the sleeping bag and slip into the hammock. No standing on the cold, wet ground. If you want simple, get a nylon or polyester bed sheet. You might try to cut it to size, but leave it a bit larger. Tie an overhand know in each end. Make a larks head knot and connect them behind the knots. Bingo, instant gear hammock. Remember, it only has to take the weight of your gear. Don't try to sit in it. I know I said it before, but these are fuller instructions. You can use almost anything as the ground sheet. Tyvek envelope, small piece of drop cloth, garbage bag etc.

In nice weather I have done a couple of things. I tend to have my gear in many different stuff sacs. If I'm not concerned about weight I bring a second light weight hammock like a GT nano 7 or BIAS WW to use as a camp lounge and gear sling. If I don't bring either of those then I hang a line between a couple of trees and hang stuff sacs and my pack from alpine butterfly loops I make in it. For inclement weather most things go in my pack and it sits on top of my pack cover under my hammock. Boots are on the ground under my hammock.

"Climb the mountains and get their good tidings.
Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees.
The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy,
while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn." — John Muir

Thanks to SteelerNation, I too use a DIY gear hammock. When not in use during the day it can double as a pack cover if you put shock cord around the outside edge. Works great! Pretty easy DIY project too.

Once I've got my hammock and sleeping gear set up, there's not much gear left; just a few clothing items, my food and kitchen, and a few odds and ends in the pack. My pack hangs either on a tree by a spare biner or clipped to the head-end suspension line under the hammock in bad weather. My pants and shirt get fastened to the suspension lines as well (though in practice, they and the pack slide down over the hammock body a little). Shoes go over a pair of sticks stuck in the ground. If I've set up on a good bit of high ground, with little chance of water running through, sometimes I leave my pack on a couple thick branches laying on the ground under my hammock.